Sacred Heart Hospital recognized with Leapfrog ‘A’ safety grade
January 18, 2021 – St. Mary’s Sacred Heart Hospital was awarded an ‘A’ in the fall 2020 Leapfrog Hospital Safety Gradea national distinction recognizing Sacred Heart’s achievements protecting patients from harm and providing safer health care.
The Leapfrog Group is an independent national watchdog organization committed to health care quality and safety. The Safety Grade assigns an ‘A’, ‘B’, ‘C’, ‘D’ or ‘F’ grade to all general hospitals across the country and is updated every six months. It is based on a hospital’s performance in preventing medical errors, injuries, accidents, infections and other harms to patients in their care.
“I am tremendously proud of our colleagues and medical staff here at Sacred Heart for achieving this level of patient safety. It is truly exceptional,” said Sacred Heart President Jeff English. “It takes tremendous commitment and attention to detail to achieve this recognition. The fact that we have achieved it during the COVID-19 pandemic says even more about our outstanding staff. The Leapfrog ‘A’ award is a great recognition of all they are doing to ensure quality and safety for our patients.”
“We are extremely grateful to hospital leadership and health care workers who have remained steadfast in prioritizing patient safety as our nation battles COVID-19,” said Leah Binder, president and CEO of The Leapfrog Group. “This ‘A’ is a testament to the care and commitment of those who work for Sacred Heart Hospital. With the current pandemic exposing existing flaws within the U.S. health care system, we appreciate you putting patient safety first. Lives depend on it.”
St. Mary’s Hospital in Athens achieved a ‘B’ in the fall safety grades. St. Mary’s Good Samaritan Hospital in Greensboro is a critical access hospital and is not included in Leapfrog’s review.
Developed under the guidance of a national Expert Panel, the Leapfrog Hospital Safety Grade uses up to 27 measures of publicly available hospital safety data to assign grades to more than 2,600 U.S. acute-care hospitals twice per year. The Hospital Safety Grade’s methodology is peer-reviewed and fully transparent, and the results are free to the public.
To see Sacred Heart’s full grade details and access patient tips for staying safe in the hospital, visit hospitalsafetygrade.org and follow The Leapfrog Group on Twitter and Facebook.
About The Leapfrog Group
Founded in 2000 by large employers and other purchasers, The Leapfrog Group is a national nonprofit organization driving a movement for giant leaps forward in the quality and safety of American health care. The flagship Leapfrog Hospital Survey and new Leapfrog Ambulatory Surgery Center (ASC) Survey collect and transparently report hospital and ASC performance, empowering purchasers to find the highest-value care and giving consumers the lifesaving information, they need to make informed decisions. The Leapfrog Hospital Safety Grade, Leapfrog’s other main initiative, assigns letter grades to hospitals based on their record of patient safety, helping consumers protect themselves and their families from errors, injuries, accidents and infections.
About St. Mary’s Sacred Heart Hospital
St. Mary’s Sacred Heart Hospital is a not-for-profit community hospital serving the greater Franklin County area. Located in Lavonia, Ga., just off I-85, Sacred Heart is part of St. Mary’s Health Care System, a member of Trinity Health. It is accredited by The Joint Commission and guided by the Mission of Trinity Health to be a compassionate and transforming healing presence within the community. Sacred Heart Hospital provides emergency care, inpatient care, critical care, surgical services, a mother/baby unit, numerous outpatient services and a wellness center. St. Mary’s Sacred Heart Hospital is designated by the State of Georgia as a Remote Treatment Stroke Center. www.stmaryshealthcaresystem.org.
###